Noriyuki Kawano
Institute for Peace Science, Hiroshima University
Megu Ohtaki
Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine, Hiroshima University
Takao Okada
Research Division, Atomic Bomb Survivors Relief Department, Hiroshima City

Abstract

The aim of this study was to spatially and temporally map the fire field that occurred near the hypocenter of the Hiroshima A-bomb on 6 August 1945. For this purpose, we used official records in Hiroshima city and plotted location-specific fire status data on a series of maps to aid in the visualization of the development of fires. The maps show that fires started in 21 locations immediately after the bombing and they spread with the passage of time, until almost the entire area within a 2-km radius of the hypocenter was burning by about 15:00. The fire continued burning in at least 10 locations past midnight, primarily in an area on the east side of the city.

This article is a summary of "" that first appeared in Hiroshima Peace Science, 32, PP107-128, 2010. (in Japanese)